Helen Fay

Helen Fay

“My work combines my two main interests, drawing and animals. Both the activity of drawing and the subject I study are a source of never ending fascination and have been for as long as I can remember. I have focused on various aspects of animal life over the years, primates, birds, curious creatures such as echidnas and tree kangaroos. Currently I am engaged in an exploration of the canine world, partly because of the sheer beauty of so many dogs but also because of their presence and dignity.

Artistically, my impetus comes from creating a balance between a solid mass and the space in which it sits. Using drawing and the exploration of form to add depth to the composition. I find printmaking, especially etching to be the media I can best translate my drawing into a solid and dramatic image. I enjoy working with and into a material such as steel or copper, etching lines and tones then working directly to scrape areas back or scratch areas to make them darker. It is a surface that one draws in as well as on. I hope this three dimensionality in the making of my prints is visible in the finished print."